Page 23 of Grumpy Boss's Secret

The light changed again. I tucked my phone back into my purse and watched the traffic, waiting until it was my turn to cross again. Maybe he was in love with someone. Who?

"Not me," I muttered before the thought fully formed in my brain. "It can't be me. There's no way."

But why not?

The "walk" sign lit up. I started walking across the street quickly as if I could escape my thoughts.

I went through all of our interactions in my mind. He had often been irritable - that was for sure - but that didn't mean he wasn't attracted to me now. It didn't even tell that he hadn't been attracted to me then; it might just mean he was attracted to me but was trying not to be.

"Oh, don't go there, Jozi," I thought, feeling my heart flare warmly. "You have no idea. And he's your boss. It can't happen."

Yeah, but I could think about it. I reached Rogue and stepped inside. Jazz music filled my ears, along with people laughing in politely hushed tones and the tinkling sound of glasses and silverware clinking. Huntington Skies had rented out a private room at the back. It was decorated in red wallpaper, with black furniture and globe-like lamps hanging from the ceiling. It looked like a speakeasy from the 1920s.

Ian was sitting at the back of the room, sandwiched between two other men talking to each other across from him. He was holding a glass of whiskey in one hand, his other hand resting lightly across the top of the table. The lamplight gleamed on his skin. He was staring at me as I walked into the room.

I smiled at him casually, as if the way he was looking at me didn't flood me with butterflies.

Was he hoping we might hook up again? He’d said it was a mistake when we’d done it in Greece.

I wouldn't get my hopes up. But I was glad I looked as good as I did. I'd already gotten what I came for – his admiration.

I kept walking, going to stand by some of the women. Janet was there, and she immediately asked about Potato. We talked in a circle for a while, casually discussing things like pets, celebrity gossip, and the weather. I ordered white wine and sipped it slowly. I wanted to talk to Ian, but I wanted to wait for a while first. If we'd just started a game of cat and mouse, I wanted to be the cat.

“We’re too segregated!”

I turned. Larry was standing up, gesturing around the room. He was right. All the men were sitting together, and we women were standing in a corner by ourselves.

That’s because you’re telling dirty jokes,” shouted Katie, a middle-aged woman with pink earrings and a toothy grin.

Ian crossed his heart and held up his right hand, implying she was wrong. The women around me giggled. I smirked.

“Let’s all play a party game,” Larry suggested. “An icebreaker. Something like that. So we can get to know each other better.”

“How about Truth or Dare?” suggested Janet.

Janet. You devil. The room chorused agreement. Most people laughed. There had already been a fair amount of drinking, and spirits were high, literally and metaphorically.

"I think that the first to go should be our beloved boss, Ian Huntington," said Larry, grinning from ear to ear like a little boy about to prank his brother.

Ian grimaced.

“Great,” he said, passing his whiskey glass from one hand to the other. A nervous gesture. “I might as well get it over with.”

"Truth or dare?" said Larry, sitting in a chair across from Ian and leaning toward him dramatically as if cross-examining him.

“Dare,” said Ian quickly.

My eyebrows rose a little. Were there things he didn’t want to talk about? Like me?

He'd already lied once today. Why not just lie here again? Interesting. We circled around the table, watching as Larry thought of a dare. He pursed his lips and stared at the ceiling, making us wait, enjoying his moment in the spotlight.

"Come on already, Larry," Ian said, sipping his whiskey.

“I dare you to kiss someone in this room,” said Larry.

Ian lifted his eyebrows.

"Oh, come on, now, that's not appropriate," she tutted Janet, but she didn't sound like she meant it.

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